Blue Hawaii Special Edition

[Craig Sawyers]

1 hour ago, justin said:

i agree, no harm in leaving it exposed if you will eventually clean it

I have two stacked 4 channel power amps (self build - but think in terms of two Emotiva XPA5 in size and power).  Damned cat has taken to sleeping on top because it is warm. Took lid off to find the inside covered in a thick layer of ginger cat fur.  Hoovered it out as a precaution, but the amps hadn't missed a beat even with a mat of cat on the circuit boards.

[Hopstretch]

53 minutes ago, Craig Sawyers said:

Hoovered it out as a precaution, but the amps hadn't missed a beat even with a mat of cat on the circuit boards.

Did it add warmth to the meowdrange?

[Craig Sawyers]

[johnwmclean]

3 hours ago, Dave R said:

Because the BHSE [ IMO ] is a very nice looking amp, covering it with a pillow case was/is stopping from seeing it's beauty.

So after seeing it mentioned on this thread, I've just ordered an Acrylic Display Cover to the measurements required.

In using a display cover means I'll have to put the BHSE  [ amp section only ] on the top shelf of my audio rack, but I was eventually going to be doing that anyway.

Don’t listen to these fools, I like your pillow case.

Happy Birthday BTW.

[wink]

I tried a pillowcase once, but my amp went to sleep........     

[astrostar59]

Hey, I didn't know it was your Birthday David, happy birthday. Going back to dust I get a thin film of really fine dust over my system desk every day. If I don't wipe it in a week it starts looking like a some ageing special effect you see in old movies Ha Ha. Price I have to pay for living near the sea and in a dry climate. I was more worried about my 009s than my amps, so I use a nice 'stuffed bird' display case, looks ok I think, maybe a bit odd? I cut a few small holes in the top to equalise humidity, and my 007s got a bit of mould on the leather cups using the bell jar. Seems fine now, and keep the dust off them plus I can gave longingly at them when not on my head.

 

 

[nopants]

I think there are industrial solutions for dust if I'm not mistaken, namely conformal spray.

has anyone tried using this? I have a can but I was hesitant to take it to the t2

[Craig Sawyers]

I didn't spray the entire board, but I used a conformal pen to specifically insulate the high voltage pads that face upwards (ie though the ventilation holes in the top plate.  I've used conformal spray on boards that will or might be working in a damp environment - like wet level damp.  It is common on mil spec stuff for that reason.

[Dave R]

 

As as can be seen in the photos, I've received the display cover I ordered for my BHSE's amp section, which was to the measurements I asked for. I also asked for part of the back panel to be cut out for cables to the BHSE.

Because I'm so impressed with this cover, I'm going to order something similar from the same company for my 009's. For my 009's though that are on a headphone stand, I'll get a cover with a front opening door so I can get to the 009's without having to remove the cover altogether.

[astrostar59]

Cool Dave. Would you take it off when the amp is in use?

[Voltron]

[Dave R]

18 minutes ago, astrostar59 said:

Cool Dave. Would you take it off when the amp is in use?

Yes, I'll remove it when the BHSE's on power, but that cover is to not only cut down on the amount of dust getting on/in that amp, but also give extra protection.

[sorenb]

 

2 minutes ago, Dave R said:

Yes, I'll remove it when the BHSE's on power, but that cover is to not only cut down on the amount of dust getting on/in that amp, but also give extra protection.

Do you put the cover back in place right after use or do you wait, and for how long?

[Dave R]

Just now, sorenb said:

 

Do you put the cover back in place right after use or do you wait, and for how long?

I got that cover today, but I'll only put it over the BHSE when that amp's cooled down and not in use.

[sorenb]

4 minutes ago, Dave R said:

I got that cover today, but I'll only put it over the BHSE when that amp's cooled down and not in use.

you might consider hinges ....sort of like the Oracle Delphi cover, which has hinges fixed to the bottom plate ...

[kevin gilmore]

hinges with torsion springs just like the old thorens dust covers.

[Dave R]

Although imo the BHSE doesn't get hot like some might think ( apart from the tubes ), it does get quite warm, so when it's on power I'll be moving that cover well away from that amp. 

[johnwmclean]

I had made a custom display cover for my 009s, very similar to yours Dave. Mine however does not have a hinged door, rather there is an ergonomic slit at the bottom on either side to run the cable through and slip your fingers under to lift off. Is a door going to be rather clunky and an annoying ritual?

[Dave R]

9 hours ago, johnwmclean said:

I had made a custom display cover for my 009s, very similar to yours Dave. Mine however does not have a hinged door, rather there is an ergonomic slit at the bottom on either side to run the cable through and slip your fingers under to lift off. Is a door going to be rather clunky and an annoying ritual?

When I order one for my 009's John, it will be a case with also an hinged door, but unlike the cover that goes over the BHSE, this new case will have the panels fixed into an aluminium frame, it will also have a base panel, so the headphone stand the 009's are on will be in that case at all times, apart from when I clean it.

I do cover my 009's with a stax cover, but it's split so needs replacing.

[astrostar59]

12 hours ago, johnwmclean said:

I had made a custom display cover for my 009s, very similar to yours Dave. Mine however does not have a hinged door, rather there is an ergonomic slit at the bottom on either side to run the cable through and slip your fingers under to lift off. Is a door going to be rather clunky and an annoying ritual?

I use a glass bell jar as you may have seen.The complication with storing / protecting headphones is the moisture and humidity. I got some white mold haze growing on my old 007s which I put down to storing them too quickly in the ali case after use. So IMO a protection needs to be provided that has a degree of escape for the air inside. This ironically then can allow dust in. I cut 6 small holes in the top of my bell jar for the air flow to rebalance with the outside. It seems to work. After my 009s broke last week, I am to have a rethink. I really want the old drivers taken apart to see what happened, to demonstrate wether the failure was dust, static charge or something else. I will try and get the repair shop to give m,e the broken driver, though they may insist it goes back to Stax. I'll keep you guys posted for those with concerns over the 009 imbalance issue.

Edited April 14, 2016 by astrostar59

[jpelg]

Would strategically placed silica gel packets help?

[johnwmclean]

Astro did you test for over voltage?

3 hours ago, Dave R said:

When I order one for my 009's John, it will be a case with also an hinged door, but unlike the cover that goes over the BHSE, this new case will have the panels fixed into an aluminium frame, it will also have a base panel, so the headphone stand the 009's are on will be in that case at all times, apart from when I clean it.

I do cover my 009's with a stax cover, but it's split so needs replacing.

Cool, I pictured something else, I can't wait to see it finished.

[3x0]

This paper may help provide some context to museum-grade preservation. WRT using silica gel, this FAQ provides quite a bit of detail. Seems like as long as you don't go overboard on the silica and use it to stay at around ~50% RH, it can confer excellent mold protection through storage.

 

Re: dust management, do any of you guys have reservations against using a DataVac for dust removal? Obviously it won't be directed anywhere near my stats but I've been thinking about using it on my BHSE rather than keeping it covered all of the time.

 

It's quite powerful (i.e. the airflow can depress the keys of nonmechanical keyboards) so I'm hoping it wouldn't put anything inside the amp at risk.

[astrostar59]

On 14 Apr 2016 at 1:09 PM, johnwmclean said:

Astro did you test for over voltage?

I didn't. My KGSShv has a server so I am thinking it would be balanced (no DC). I thought about testing the bias but didn't know which pad to pick that up on.

Have you heard of issues with over voltage in a KGSShv?

[spritzer]

If you do something stupid then the KGSSHV has more than enough potential to fry any Pro bias headphones.